The contest was tight early on, as the teams swapped the lead six times in the opening six minutes before a lay-up from junior forward James Wallace put BC in front for good 15-14. The Bison gradually pulled away throughout the half and on the strength of a late 12-4 spurt, which saw Mike Drahos tally eight during the run, the Bison took a 38-28 lead into halftime.
Drahos went to the break with 17 points and the Bison hit 17 of 33 shots in the first half to counter a solid Terrier attack that shot 46 percent in the first half.
Bethany opened the second half with a traditional three-point play from junior Chris Stephens and a trey from sophomore Brody Jackson to push their lead out to 44-30. Hiram would respond by using back-to-back hoops by Rick Baldwin and then a lay-up and three from Emeka Mbanefo to get within eight at 47-39 with 15:48 to go.
The Bison then squashed any hopes for a Hiram comeback, as Mike Drahos stepped up with seven consecutive points during the ensuing 12-2 burst that swelled BC’s lead to 59-41 with 10:26 remaining. The Terriers would never move closer than 15 the rest of the way, as Bethany captured its third win in a row.
In posting his fourth double-double of the year, Mike Drahos hit 14 of 23 shots from the floor. He also grabbed four offensive boards among his 12 rebounds and added four steals.
In addition to Drahos, two other Bison also hit for double figures, including his brother Matt, who registered 15 points and eight rebounds. Jackson tossed in 11, which included 3-3 shooting from deep.
Hiram was led by Baldwin with 11 points.
The game was Bethany’s final tune-up for PAC play, as the Green and White begin defense of their conference championship Saturday when they travel to Thomas More College. The match-up, which will be the second game of a doubleheader with the women’s team, will be Thomas More’s first PAC game ever, as the school is in its first year in the conference. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m.
Bethany College vs Hiram College 1.3.06 7:00pm at Hiram, OH At Hiram, OH BET 84, HIRAM COLLEGE 61 BET (8-4, 0-0) Mike Drahos 14-23 2-2 30; Matt Drahos 5-11 5-7 15; Brody Jackson 4-6 0-0 11; Scott Mezyk 3-5 0-0 8; Chris Stephens 3-6 1-1 7; James Wallace 2-4 0-0 4; Josh Polantz 1-4 0-0 3; Imani Smith 1-1 1-1 3; Bill Grant 0-0 2-2 2; Marc Palermo 0-2 1-2 1; Marcus Adams 0-0 0-0 0; Joe Sprumont 0-0 0-0 0; Nate Stoner 0-0 0-0 0; Carey Palermo 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 33-62 12-15 84. HIRAM COLLEGE (3-8, 1-1) Rick Baldwin 5-11 0-0 11; Brandon Pool 4-7 1-2 9; AJ White 3-7 2-3 8; Emeka Mbanefo 3-6 1-2 8; Chuck Williams 3-6 0-0 8; TC Spencer 4-6 0-0 8; Michael McDevitt 2-5 1-1 5; Phillip Goll 1-2 0-0 2; Ian Pfouts 0-1 2-4 2; Donnie Iden 0-0 0-0 0; Joseph Ogonek 0-0 0-0 0; Kyle Kresge 0-1 0-0 0; Matt Vana 0-1 0-0 0; Shawn DeJohn 0-2 0-0 0; Joe Opalka-Brown 0-0 0-0 0; Steve Franceschi 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-55 7-12 61. BET........................... 38 46 - 84 Hiram College................. 28 33 - 61 3-point goals-BET 6-14 (Brody Jackson 3-3; Scott Mezyk 2-3; Josh Polantz 1-2; James Wallace 0-1; Marc Palermo 0-1; Mike Drahos 0-4), Hiram College 4-13 (Chuck Williams 2-3; Emeka Mbanefo 1-1; Rick Baldwin 1-2; Michael McDevitt 0-1; Kyle Kresge 0-1; Shawn DeJohn 0-1; AJ White 0-4). Fouled out--BET-Josh Polantz, Hiram College-None. Rebounds-BET 38 (Mike Drahos 12), Hiram College 26 (AJ White 7; TC Spencer 7). Assists-BET 12 (Chris Stephens 3), Hiram College 9 (AJ White 4). Total fouls-BET 18, Hiram College 17. A-80